Gov. Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta on Friday inaugurated a 10-member Steering Committee for the Framework for Responsible Investment in Land-Intensive Agriculture (FRILIA) programme.
FRILIA is a $750 million World Bank–assisted programme aimed at boosting agricultural development in the state, subject to effective implementation.
The governor, who was represented by his deputy, Sir Monday Onyeme—also the chairman of the steering committee—performed the inauguration in Asaba, the state capital.
Oborevwori said the programme was conceptualized to facilitate ease of doing business in Delta, adding that agricultural development remained a key priority of the Federal Government.
He explained that the committee’s terms of reference include promoting transparency in land acquisition and resettlement for large-scale agribusiness investments.
Other responsibilities include promoting inclusive agricultural production models, safeguarding tenure rights holders from dispossession, monitoring the application of compensation standards, and ensuring environmental sustainability in land utilization for agribusiness investments.
The governor also inaugurated a 20-member Technical Committee to provide expert and technical support to the steering committee.
In addition, he inaugurated a six-member Grievance Redress Committee comprising experts in land administration and allocation.
According to him, the committee is tasked with addressing complaints and disputes that may arise during land acquisition and allocation processes for agribusiness investments.
In separate remarks, the Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Mr Val Areyinka, and the Director-General of the Delta State Investment Development Agency, Mr Anthony Elekeokuri, said the $750 million World Bank facility would be accessible to the state upon effective implementation of the programme.
They explained that FRILIA is a performance-based financial support initiative that can only be accessed after meeting clearly defined benchmarks set by development partners.
